is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

located on

Amami Ōshima , also known as Amami, is the largest island in the Amami Islands, Amami archipelago between Kyūshū and Okinawa Prefecture, Okinawa. It is one of the Satsunan Islands, all of which belong to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, 712.35 ...

, in Ōshima District,

Kagoshima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,527,019 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 9,187 Square kilometre, km2 (3,547 Square m ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. As of June 2013, the town had an estimated

population Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...

of 5,992 and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

of 73 persons per km². The total area was 82.06 km².

Geography

Tatsugō occupies the northern portion of Amami Ōshima, facing the

East China Sea The East China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. China names the body of water along its eastern coast as "East Sea" (, ) due to direction, the name of "East China Sea" is otherwise ...

to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is bordered by the city of

Amami The The name ''Amami-guntō'' was standardized on February 15, 2010. Prior to that, another name, ''Amami shotō'' (奄美諸島), was also used. is a Japanese archipelago in the Satsunan Islands, which is part of the Ryukyu Islands, and is sout ...

to both the south and the north. The climate is classified as

humid subtropical A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between la ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Cfa'') with very warm summers and mild winters. Precipitation is high throughout the year, but is highest in the months of May, June and September. The area is subject to frequent

typhoon A typhoon is a tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere and which produces sustained hurricane-force winds of at least . This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, accounting for a ...

Surrounding municipalities

History

Tatsugō Village was established on April 1, 1908. As with all of the Amami Islands, the village came under the administration of the United States from July 1, 1946 to December 25, 1953. It was elevated to town status on February 10, 1975.

Economy

The town economy is primarily based on agriculture, with

sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...

and citrus

horticulture Horticulture (from ) is the art and science of growing fruits, vegetables, flowers, trees, shrubs and ornamental plants. Horticulture is commonly associated with the more professional and technical aspects of plant cultivation on a smaller and mo ...

as the main crops, and commercial fishing. The Amami Nature Observation Forest, in the Nakagumo mountains, is in the center of Tatsugō and is a popular ecotourist attractive. Tatsugō is also known for the production of Ōshima tsumugi, a traditional silk textile used for high-quality kimono. The town is home to Maeda Tsumugi Kōgei, one of the largest producers of Ōshima tsumugi in Japan.

Tatsugō-gara

The Tatsugō-gara pattern is a traditional design used in Ōshima tsumugi weaving, named after Tatsugō village on Amami Ōshima. It is composed of three stylized motifs: the scales of the venomous habu snake, the zigzag leaves of the sotetsu (

sago palm Sago palm is a common name for several plants which are used to produce a starchy food known as sago. Sago palms may be "true palms" in the family Arecaceae The Arecaceae () is a family (biology), family of perennial plant, perennial, flowerin ...

), and floral elements (sometimes colored in red or blue). Oshima tatsugo-min

These motifs reflect the natural environment of the region and are abstracted into geometric forms using the precise ikat technique characteristic of Ōshima tsumugi.https://visual-cultural-research-art-ed.blogspot.com/2011/04/voices-from-minority-culture-of-amami.html

Transportation

Highway

Japan National Route 58 is a Japanese National highways of Japan, national highway connecting the capital cities Kagoshima and Naha of Kagoshima Prefecture and Okinawa Prefecture, respectively. With a total length of , it is the longest national highway in Japan, tho ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tatsugo, Kagoshima Towns in Kagoshima Prefecture Populated coastal places in Japan